Shadowed Reunion
by Ymerej
Summary: Edgar: "The following is a non-profit fan-based work of fiction. Dragonfable, AdventureQuest and AdventureQuest Worlds are owned by Artix Entertainment. Please support the official release."
1. Chapter 1

**Shadowed Reunion**

Edgar stood next to Artix, watching as the cloaked necromantress picked up the skull of the last skeleton the paladin had struck down, her broken phylactery glowing. The necromantress wore a hooded dark purple cloak and black gloves, hiding all but her green eyes. She seemed so familiar to Edgar, but he could never place her.

Artix waited to see what the cloaked woman would do. She was outnumbered, and despite the frequency of her appearances, he'd never seen her actually fight. He visibly tensed when the skull she was holding lifted into the air, breaking apart. The pieces of bone spun around quickly before the necromantress caught them and tossed them onto the ground. As the pieces melted into blood, they formed a magic circle on the ground.

Edgar felt his stomach churn. Something was coming. He raised his sword in preparation. He assumed Artix could feel it too, since he raised his blade as well. A few seconds later, large cracks glowing red appeared in the circle. The ground burst open, and an undead warrior three times the size of either warrior rose up. It wore a horned helm, metal bracers and boots, and had several arrows protruding from its back. Its eyes were glowing crimson as it reached down and pulled up a sword roughly two-thirds its own size.

Edgar looked up to the tip of the sword, noticing a purple aura surrounding it. "…Yikes. I think you're going to need something a little bigger." He said to Artix.

"Hmmm. You may be right." The paladin looked at his sword, the only replacement he could get after losing his axe. He looked all around the area for a weapon, and then crouched low. When he rose again, Edgar's jaw dropped as Artix lifted a large stone hammer he'd produced from seemingly nowhere. "…This should do! Ready?" Edgar nodded, lifting his own sword.

The fight was on. Edgar and Artix made great use of their paladin training, focusing light into their attacks and healing themselves when the large warrior managed to land a blow. Despite its size, the creature fought with great skill, very similar to Edgar's style. Artix was equally impressive, managing to not only defend with his oversized weapon, but get in a few good blows of his own.

The necromantress watched with wide eyes as her champion undead lost ground against the two warriors. Edgar managed to knock the sword out of the giant's hands, and kicked it away. However, when Artix attempted another blow, the undead warrior caught the hammer, and threw it aside. It grabbed the paladin's shoulders and lifted him into the air. Artix closed his eyes and placed his hands on the creature's wrists. Smoke rose from his hands, and a burst of light separated the pair. The giant's red eyes went wide as it realized its hands were gone.

Artix noticed he was still holding the creature's hands and recoiled when one of them twitched, dropping them to the ground. From a few yards away, Edgar watched, waiting for Artix to finish the fight. He didn't wait long, as Artix closed his eyes and was surrounded by light. He lifted his right hand into the air and a bolt of lightning came down, forming a spear of light in his hand.

The necromantress watched in horror as Artix threw the spear, which passed right through her creation, destroying its body, and leaving its skull and helm to fall to the ground. However, the spear did not slow as it shot through the necromantress' phylactery as well, shattering it. Her eyes widened as the spear shot through her as well. It did little damage to her, likely because most paladin arts are for dealing primarily with undead, but the force was enough to knock her to the ground.

Edgar walked toward Artix, joining him as he walked slowly toward the necromantress. When they reached her, the spear dissipated, and Edgar handed Artix his sword. Artix looked down to their foe. "Now we have you! Let us see who hides beneath those purple robes!"

The brown haired paladin took hold of the shoulder of her robe, and the necromantress leapt away, leaving it in his grasp. They could now clearly see her bright green eyes, short purple hair of the same shade as Edgar's, and small red bat wings on her back. Edgar remembered her from the town of Moonridge. "You've unveiled Vayle! I have to admit, I saw that coming."

If looks could kill, her glare would have slaughtered them both, reanimated them, and killed them again. "YOU… YOU ANIMALS!"

Edgar felt a slight tingling sensation, but pushed it to the back of his mind. Artix raised an eyebrow. "Us?"

"You destroyed my brother! I have kept his spirit safe in his spiritcrystal for YEARS… ever since… that night! I was so close to getting Noxus to teach me to bring him back… but I used his spirit to animate that undead and you DESTROYED HIM and THE SPIRITCRYSTAL! Now his spirit is gone… forever! It's all your fault!"

Artix gave Vayle a sympathetic look. "Vayle, if what you say is true then you have been keeping his spirit captive. The spirits of the dead long to move on. Noxus was lying to you when he said that he would teach you how to get your brother back. If his life force was really captive all those years then there was probably nothing left of your brother to…"

"NO! YOU LIE! I LOVED my brother Edgar, and YOU destroyed him…" Both paladins' eyes went wide at the name, but neither had a chance to respond. "I HATE you Artix!_** I HATE YOU!**_ Noxus was right. I should have destroyed you when I had the chance."

Artix lowered his head. He remembered when he first met Vayle when they were children. How he'd saved her from the monsters in the cave they were trapped in, and how he'd taken her back to the village. Despite the fact that her brother assumed he was responsible at the time, Vayle still seemed to consider him a friend. To have lost that friendship… like _this_. "Vayle…" His voice trailed off. He wasn't sure what more he could say.

Edgar stepped forward, ignoring the strange feeling that was growing stronger by the minute. "Please Vayle, listen to Artix…"

Vayle ignored them, too overcome by anger and renewed grief to care what they had to say. "I was holding back because of what happened when we were children, but that's over now." There was new, more potent venom in her voice as she continued. "I will avenge my brother if it is the last thing I do. You will pay… **BOTH OF YOU WILL PAY!**" Darkness shrouded her, most likely returning her to the Necropolis.

Edgar placed a hand on Artix' shoulder. "Artix, if she has gone to warn Noxus then we don't have a lot of time. We have to get to Noxus and stop him."

"I do not believe that it was her."

"Snap out of it paladin. Sepulchure won't wait for his undead army. We have a world to save from darkness."

Artix finally looked up to Edgar. "Yes. You are right. Noxus has to be stopped…NOW!"

Edgar smirked. "That's better. Let's get to it." As he turned to walk away, the tingling sensation from before became a sharp pain, forcing Edgar to his knees. He grit his teeth and dug his fingers into the dirt, trying to bear it.

Artix knelt next to him quickly. "Edgar! What's wrong? Are you injured?"

Edgar shook his head as Artix tried to heal him, but it didn't make a difference. Edgar felt as though he were being pierced by swords on all sides. His blood was like lava in his veins, and he wondered if this was how it was supposed to end. Suddenly he opened his eyes, which turned from hazel to bright green, just like Vayle's.

Memories flooded his mind, memories of Vayle as a child, coming home accompanied by a brown-haired boy. He remembered seeing those red wings on her back for the first time.

"_VAYLE! I was so worried. What… are those WINGS? What…?"_

_Vayle looked up to Edgar imploringly. "Brother, please don't be mad! I got lost and this boy found me. His name is Artix and he…"_

_Edgar turned to Artix, glaring at him. "YOU! Somehow you did this to my little sister! You… stay away from her!"_

_Artix looked confused, apologetic even. "But… No… I…"_

"_I SAID STAY AWAY!"_

As his mind and vision returned to the present, he looked up to a shocked Artix, a strong paladin who had saved his life several times, who never needed a reason to help people. He remembered Artix telling him about the day he met Vayle, and the green mist that had claimed the lives of all the villagers, including Vayle's own brother. Now he realized what was happening.

The phylactery held the soul of Vayle's brother, but there had always been a piece missing. When Vayle used her brother's spirit to animate the giant undead warrior, he could feel it coming, and felt it throughout the entire fight. When the crystal was destroyed, the strange tingling feeling began. Until now, Edgar's earliest memory was waking up in the woods in Amityvale, near the stone circle where the witches known as the Yaga sisters resided.

"EDGAR!" Artix' voice finally broke through the cloud of memories and revelations as Edgar looked up to him. "What's wrong? Tell me!"

"I… I'm sorry Artix."

"Sorry for what?"

"For yelling at you. You were protecting Vayle, and even brought her home. And I blamed you unjustly…"

Artix narrowed his eyes. "Edgar? What are you talking about?"

"I remember. I'm Vayle's brother."

Artix' eyes widened. "But how? She said she'd held him in that spiritcrystal, and it's gone."

"It was broken. I think… I think she only had a part of me. But I remember that day in the village. I remember our house, and even the green mist."

Artix took a step back as Edgar got to his feet. "But how could that be possible?"

Edgar was silent for a moment before speaking. "I don't know. But I know who to ask." He turned toward the helm covered skull that only moments ago was part of him. He walked past it, picking up the oversized sword of darkness it had wielded against them. The sword felt much lighter than it appeared to be, and he rested the blade on his armored shoulder before turning back to Artix. "But I'll do it after we deal with Noxus."

Artix smiled, resting his sword on his own shoulder. Having done all they could here, the pair of paladins turned back the way they came, and left the cemetery. One chapter of their story was nearing its end, and they both knew the next would change everything.


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks to everyone who reviewed chapter one, and sorry it took me so long to get chapter two out. I think I'm lucky to have gotten such positive reviews on my first story.

KyasarinJakkusan: I do my best work with concepts and twists. Plus I have a soft spot for both tragic and minor characters. With readers like you I'm hoping to keep this story going for some time if possible. And I hope the fight is to your satisfaction. If not, I take full responsibility. The only reference I had were the skills available to everyone in-game.

aura of gray: I had actually finished the quest chain before the idea for this story came to me. It just takes me awhile to get to writing anything...however, I can tell you that the end of the quest chain is most certainly NOT the end of this story! I hope you keep an eye on it and follow this far-fetched tale I'm weaving. ^^

Remaints: I plan to, thanks! I hope find the new chapters, and future chapters, to be as easy to read, since there will be more original content. For the first chapter, I had both a quest and an animated video for reference, but this chapter had only a quest. The further we get into the story, the more original content I'll have to include. Hopefully, I can keep my passion for drama under wraps so the story doesn't lose the light-hearted humor Artix Entertainment is famous for.

Sorceress of the Nile: Ok ok ok, my arm is twisted, I'll keep the story going. ^-^ That's partly why I decided to post this, he seemed like the kind of character that would come back for another cutscene at least, but once the undead boss was beaten that was it. Edgar's appearances were limited to two quests, and that just struck me as disappointing. There was so much more that could've been done, so I made a character based on him, and the story idea formed while I was playing.

* * *

><p><strong>Noxus Fumes<strong>

The two paladins had fought through a number of large creatures that they could only call 'Necrotized'. Neither one was sure why that word came to mind, but there were more important things to do now. They had reached the far side of the Necropolis, standing in front of the only building they hadn't checked. Noxus had to be here.

'_But if Noxus is in here, she might be too…'_ Edgar feared nothing more than a confrontation with his sort-of-long-lost little sister. His worry must've been clear on his face, as Artix placed an armored hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Are you sure you don't want to tell her? Surely both of us could-"

"No." Edgar's tone left no room for argument. "In the state she's in, she would think we're trying to trick her. Besides, we don't know for sure that she's with him right now. She might be off somewhere, making a new undead monster to destroy us."

Artix smirked a bit, accepting Edgar's logic and attempting to lighten the mood. "Let's hope so. Now, shall we knock?"

Edgar tightened his grip on the Moonstriker. He'd left the oversized sword at home before they started searching for Noxus; If Vayle was here, he didn't want her to see him with it and hate him for 'disrespecting her brother' or worse, make the connection between them. Smirking back at Artix, Edgar nodded. Edgar raised his left foot as Artix raised his right, and the two kicked the doors open. They took a few steps inside before meeting the red, corrupted eyes of the Necropolis' master.

"Ah good, Artix and Edgar. Right on time." The sickly-looking man floated inches above the floor as always, a testament to his magical power. But the tactic was useless against the two paladins. They both knew Warlic, possibly the most powerful mage of all time, and HE never hovered.

Edgar narrowed his eyes at the necromancer. "Surrender the Darkness Orb, Noxus, and we may just let you walk out of Doomwood." He lowered his voice only barely, to emphasize the importance of his words. "Sepulchure has his own ways of dealing with failures like you."

Noxus ignored the implication, responding with confidence. "Give YOU the Darkness Orb? You could not control its power. I would never hand it over to you...even if I had it." The dark mage hid his satisfaction at the shocked looks in the eyes of the heroes.

Edgar was the first to recover his voice. "You don't have it?"

Artix took a step forward. "Only a necromancer with the power of the Darkness Orb could have built that army."

"Don't you fools understand yet?" Noxus looked the elder paladin in the eyes before continuing. "Artix, the day you and Vayle came out of the Guardian Tower, Vayle brought the power with her…"

Artix' and Edgar's eyes widened at once.

"**…Lady Vayle IS the Elemental Orb of Darkness now…**" Again, Noxus hid his satisfaction, albeit barely this time. "…and I alone control her!" The paladins remained quiet, letting Noxus continue his monologue. "I had spent months trying to enter the chamber beneath the Guardian Tower… but on that day I felt the power of the orb leave the chamber on its own. Imagine my surprise when I felt all that dark power flowing from a little girl…" Noxus recalled the first time he'd seen Vayle, with her unusual red wings.

"...I knew that the Orb had chosen to bind with this girl, and if I couldn't control the orb..." For the first time since they had laid eyes on him, the old necromancer openly grinned. "Then I would control the girl. After I 'saved' her from the town we watched it burn together… and I began to teach her." Noxus remembered the event clearly, with everything that had happened that day, he didn't allow himself to forget a single moment.

_The necromancer stood just behind the young winged girl, watching the flames consume what had once been her home. Vayle had managed to dry her tears shortly after Noxus had rescued her. She didn't want to seem ungrateful, but there were some things she simply couldn't forget._

_ "Thank you for saving me Master Noxus, but my brother… I wish you could have saved him too. I wish it wasn't too late."_

_ Noxus might've grinned at the thought of how easy convincing this girl would be, if it didn't mean jeopardizing his plan. "When you are a necromancer, child, there is no such thing as 'too late'." Vayle's eyes widened as she turned to look at Noxus. He continued staring forward, into the fire. "I can teach you, if you like. Simply focus on your brother's energy… imagine capturing it in a bottle."_

_ Vayle did so, and Noxus watched as a spiritcrystal suddenly grew in front of her. He noticed a small piece was missing, but attributed it to it being her first attempt. Vayle smiled widely when she saw the crystal in front of her. "Master Noxus! I did it! I can feel him inside that crystal!"_

_ However, Vayle's smile dropped when she heard her brother's voice, slightly distorted from the crystal. "Hhhehhhelllp Mmmmeeeeeee…"_

_ "It sounds… it sounds like he's in pain. Oh, how do we help him?"_

_ Noxus brushed off the plea. "He just wants to live again, that is all. We will find a way, Vayle. If you become my student, I will teach you all that I know and we will find a way to bring him back."_

_ Vayle looked up to Noxus with hope in her eyes. "Do you promise? Do you promise that you can bring Edgar back?"_

_ The necromancer looked back at her with a gleam in his eyes that no child could understand. "It will take much hard work on your part, but yes… I promise, Vayle."_

"Since that day, I have been using her… the power inside her… for myself. I had to be careful not to teach her too much. With the Orb bound to her, she could easily overpower me. The years passed and I raised her as a necromantress. In time, with her help, I became Dean of Necromancy University and she became my star student."

Artix had stepped forward to grab Edgar's arm as Noxus recounted his story. The purple-haired paladin was full of hate stronger than any he had ever felt before. Now that he knew what Noxus had done to Vayle, to his only family, he wanted nothing more than to charge forward and impale him. It was only Artix' hand and silent pleas that held him back.

Noxus, unaffected by the paladin's anger, narrowed his eyes at the pair. "Once you two troublemakers are finished, she will be able to rebuild Sepulchure's undead army in a matter of moments."

Artix had managed to calm Edgar down enough to question the villain. "So you never even planned on helping her use necromancy to raise her brother?"

Noxus looked at him with confusion. He expected a paladin to know more about his enemy than this. "Raise her brother? Necromancy is using dark power to control the dead… not revive them. Necromancy may have that kind of power but I've never seen it." The fact that one of the heroes before him shared the name of Vayle's brother was not lost on Noxus, but he knew it couldn't be the same person. He knew that despite her inexperience, Vayle was too closely attached to her brother to have captured another spirit by accident. "Besides, how would I control her if I returned her brother to her? What would have been the point of killing him in the first place?"

Artix raised an eyebrow. He could tell, even from behind Edgar, that his friend was stunned into silence. "Killing him? He died as a result of the Green Mist. Do you mean that you…?"

Noxus nodded. "That's right. The Green Mist was a deadly disease that I created to wipe out that village… YOUR village, Artix. If I had known that your exposure to the Orb made you resistant to my corruption I would have made other… arrangements. Especially considering what a thorn in my side that both you and Edgar have become. All that ends here and now. I will finish you like I should have years ago. I will re-create the undead army… and I will continue using Vayle as my puppet, for as long as I can use her brother as bait."

Edgar, having been stunned by the knowledge that Noxus had been responsible for his former death, was brought back to the moment as Noxus words reminded him that everything Vayle had suffered through was because Noxus had been able to use him as bait. He couldn't help but feel partly responsible for all that had happened to her. To his rear left, Artix realized what was going through his friend's mind, and knew he wouldn't be able to hold him back. But before Edgar could raise his sword, another voice called out from behind them.

"I'VE HEARD ENOUGH!"

Vayle's angered voice caught all three men by surprise. Even Noxus' eyes widened slightly as Vayle walked in, passed the paladins and stared him down. "All these years… I TRUSTED YOU! YOU HAVE BEEN USING ME!"

Noxus regained as much of his composure as he could before trying to salvage the situation. "Vayle! You misunderstood me. Let me make it clear to you-"

"No more of your LIES 'Master' Noxus!" Vayle's tone was as wicked now as it had been in the graveyard, Edgar noted. "Edgar," The paladin tensed when Vayle spoke to him. Though he was glad she didn't turn to look at him. "I can never forgive what you have done… there may still have been hope… but let me help you finish Noxus." The necromantress narrowed her eyes at her teacher. "With all of our power combined, this slug cannot possibly stand against us."

Edgar and Artix exchanged surprised glances, but nodded. "Of course."

Noxus glared at the now-trio of heroes before him. "BAH! I was going to have to kill you for the Orb eventually, child. Now is as good a time as any." Dark energy gathered in his hands as he spoke. "COME! Face NOXUS and know the power of a TRUE NECROMANCER!" Noxus raised his hands in the air, drawing two skeletal minions with vicious looking red swords out of the ground. These were clearly stronger than ordinary undead, as they wore helmets of the same unknown material as their weapons.

Edgar and Artix raised their swords. "Artix, take out the skeletons." The paladin only nodded. He knew Edgar was eager to face Noxus head-on, and he had no problem taking out undead. Vayle stood back, summoning undead minions of her own to aid in the fight. One of Noxus' skeletons rushed each of the holy warriors, signaling the start of the battle.

Edgar rushed forward to meet the minion headed towards him. He wasn't about to let a pile of bones get in his way now, no matter how impressive it's equipment. He spun his sword downward, lifting it above his head as it came back up, and then brought it down with both hands to clash with the skeleton. The force of Edgar's blow pushed the skeleton's sword down far enough for Edgar to hold his left hand directly in front of his opponent's face and unleash a blast of light magic at point blank. As the skeleton recoiled from the magic, Edgar spun around in place, lining his sword up vertically and performing a literal uppercut. Because the skeleton had already been knocked off guard, it couldn't muster the strength to halt the paladin's sword. Edgar's attack sent him high enough into the air that he set one foot on the skeleton's shoulder pad and pushed himself forward, landing just behind it. Before the undead could recover, Edgar finished his combo by unleashing a burst of light magic from himself. The blast flung the skeleton forward to be impaled on two spears. Vayle's undead lancers lifted Noxus' minion into the air, then threw it off of their spears toward Artix.

Noxus had hoped to delay the paladins with his minions while he dealt with his former student, viewing her as the biggest threat. However, as Edgar rushed toward him a strange feeling welled up in his chest, and Noxus began to wonder if the purple-haired warrior of light was really the least dangerous of the three. Edgar raised his sword, but Noxus moved quickly to cut him off by channeling dark energy into his hands and striking Edgar's abdomen with his empowered claws.

The stinging blow made the warrior recoil, but he recovered quickly. As Noxus began moving back to distance himself from Edgar, the enraged swordsman ran toward him again. This time however, Edgar moved even faster as he lowered his sword before leaping off the ground, back flipping towards Noxus as he outstretched his sword to catch the Necromancer. But Noxus evaded the attack by floating to his right, watching Edgar pass him by. As he prepared his counterattack, he heard footsteps to his right, turning in time to see Vayle's heel land on his shoulder and throwing him off balance. Vayle immediately followed her initial attack with a straight kick aimed at Noxus chest that threw the elder necromancer back.

Cursing himself for being distracted and losing sight of Vayle at the fight's onset, Noxus called up another undead in front of himself before Vayle could close the distance again. The new undead wore a slightly different helm of the same material as Noxus' other two minions, but wielded a staff as it hovered in the air like its master. It held the staff forward, sending two bolts of dark energy at Vayle. Though she failed to dodge the attack her own dark powers, and likely the powers of the orb, made her resistant to most of the damage the attack was meant to inflict.

Before either necromancer could move, the undead mage was destroyed by a beam of light that passed between Vayle and Noxus. Both turned in time to see Edgar launch off the ground into another Spinstrike. This time, Noxus was too shocked to avoid the attack and Edgar's blade struck the right side of his chest. As soon as the paladin landed, he stepped back while his sword shined brightly. He raised his arm as his weapon was replaced by a spear of light just like Artix had used against Edgar's undead half. The thought of that battle reminded Edgar that this man he faced was the man who had killed him once before. The man who had used his death to manipulate his little sister and make her his tool.

Edgar grit his teeth and threw the spear with incredible force, but his earlier hesitation had given Noxus time to recover enough to move to his left and avoid the spear. Edgar jumped to his right, making sure the two of them were lined up as the spear returned to him, shooting through Noxus from behind before being caught by Edgar.

Noxus clutched the front of his robe. This fight had gone poorly, not at all like he had expected. He looked up to Edgar, who had lifted his spear with one hand, prepared to throw it again. The necromancer's gaze shifted to Vayle. His former student glared at him just as the purple-haired hero next to her. Somehow their glares were equally venomous, as though they each despised him the same.

Noxus' eyes widened under the shadow of his hood. It should have been impossible, but it was the only explanation that made sense. The hero's name, hair and now eyes, the rage Noxus had felt the paladin focusing at him. Somehow, it WAS the same Edgar. He knew of no art that could do such a thing, but it would account for all the strange similarities perfectly.

He was brought back to the moment by a flash of light near the entrance of the room. He saw the remains of his minions on the ground at Artix' feet as the holy warrior held his own spear of light. As Artix took aim at Noxus in the same stance as Edgar, Vayle's undead troops returned to her side, aiming their own simple spears at her former teacher. Cornered by his enemies at spear-point, all of his minions destroyed, Noxus growled at the turn of events. Things had been fine until those paladins had gotten involved. Vayle raised her hand, directing her servants to charge as Artix and Edgar pulled their spears back to throw in unison. But before the party could finish him, Noxus fell back into the nearby shadows, fading away. The spears of light reverted to the swords the paladins had brought with them. Noxus had fled, and they had won. The victory felt hollow to them all.

After Vayle dismissed her minions, the three gathered in the center of the room, and Edgar turned to his sister. "Thank you for your help, Vayle."

The necromantress waved it off. "Save your thanks, Edgar. Noxus is defeated and the Necropolis is empty. That is enough for now."

Edgar's features became etched with concern as he remembered what Noxus had said. "But… the Darkness Orb… what will you do?"

Vayle didn't have to ponder her answer long. She'd decided that before coming to this place and finding out the truth. And Noxus' betrayal wouldn't change her mind. "I will continue trying to find a way to save my brother. I still believe the key is in Necromancy."

Edgar looked down, disappointed. He wished he could tell her the truth, that his name wasn't merely coincidence, that he wasn't just a look-alike… but he knew this was not the right time. "Will you stay here at the University?"

Vayle shook her head. Her memories of this place were no longer as fond as they used to be. "No, but Necromancy University has been here for centuries. Another master will come along and claim it." She looked up at Edgar for the first time since her arrival. "I know that you and Sepulchure both need the power of the Darkness Orb, so I know we will meet again. Just be ready for me. Next time that we meet, it may not be as friends."

As Edgar's expression became somber, Vayle noticed the same thing Noxus had before. But to her, this change was much more significant. She had actually seen his eyes before, but now they had turned green, like hers. It was at that moment that she questioned her initial assumption that his name and appearance were mere coincidence. True, she had held her brother's soul in the phylactery, but with this change, she felt as though her brother lived on in more than just her memory. It was a moment later she realized he was speaking. She missed the first thing he said and only heard his final words. "Farewell, Vayle."

She looked him in the eyes again, trying to see if it was just a moment's weakness that she felt such a foolish thing… but it was still there. She cleared her throat quietly, doing her best to maintain a stoic expression. "Farewell, Edgar."

As Vayle walked past Edgar and out the door, Artix walked up to stand next to his friend. "That went better than expected. Now that we've defeated the villain and saved the day, what should we do? There may be a few undead still lurking about down here…"

Edgar turned to Artix, glad for his friend's positive attitude. "You'll have to go find them without me. Noxus is defeated, which means it's time for some answers."

"And who do you intend to ask?"

* * *

><p>As Edgar passed through the fourth stone archway, he saw the five Yaga Sisters gathered in the final clearing, the infamous stone circle. He wouldn't be surprised if they had been expecting him, they were witches of considerable power. Their identical appearances however made it impossible for him to remember which witch was which.<p>

"What business do you have with us now? We have no monster for you to slay, and we doubt you have another princess to be 'saved'." Another of the sisters chuckled at the final comment. Though he couldn't tell them apart, he knew it was Musuk. He remembered bringing Ash here in an attempt to save a princess they'd heard about, only to find she was one of the sisters and had no intention of leaving.

"I haven't come to fight. I've come for answers."

"Do we look like school teachers?" Two of the old witches asked in unison. He guessed one of them was Gilth. She had a habit of speaking simultaneously with her sisters.

The paladin couldn't tell if Musuk was glaring at him or not. "Why should we help you after you ruined our fun?"

Edgar reached behind him and produced the large sword of darkness. He stabbed the blade into the ground between himself and the sisters. "Because I found out I was undead. I don't know any necromancers who could've revived me, and my earliest memory after the end of my life was waking up outside YOUR circle."

One of the sisters grumbled. "I told you we should've left him farther out."

Edgar narrowed his eyes. "So you DID do it! I want the whole story… NOW!"


	3. Chapter 3

Once again I apologize for how long it took for me to update this story. I'm going to blame it on writer's block. However, I can tell you that this chapter was originally going to have more happening, but I opted to split it into two chapters, so I already have notes written down for what's going to happen in the next one. I swear to you, it WILL NOT take another 14 months for this story to be updated again.  
>To all the readers of the previous chapters, I hope you find the answers provided in this one to be satisfactory. If ever I've wanted to be constructively criticized, it would now.<p>

KyasarinJakkusan: Thank you very much! Honestly the fight scene was my biggest worry. To do a good fight I need to really detail it, but nothing is more exhausting to me than writing a scene like that. I'm not sure there'll be another one for awhile. As for the Sisters, they were the only way I knew of to explain how Edgar could be brought back as a living human, and the Archknight quest was a much better resource for them than just the Stone Circle quest.

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><p><strong>Yaga Sisters<strong>

As Edgar passed through the fourth stone archway, he saw the five Yaga Sisters gathered in the final clearing, the infamous stone circle. He wouldn't be surprised if they had been expecting him, they were witches of considerable power. Their identical appearances however made it impossible for him to remember which witch was which.

"What business do you have with us now? We have no monster for you to slay, and we doubt you have another princess to be 'saved'." Another of the sisters chuckled at the final comment. Though he couldn't tell them apart, he knew it was Musuk. He remembered bringing Ash here in an attempt to save a princess they'd heard about, only to find she was one of the sisters and had no intention of leaving.

"I haven't come to fight. I've come for answers."

"Do we look like school teachers?" Two of the old witches asked in unison. He guessed one of them was Gilth. She had a habit of speaking simultaneously with her sisters.

The paladin couldn't tell if Musuk was glaring at him or not. "Why should we help you after you ruined our fun?"

Edgar reached behind him and produced the large sword of darkness. He stabbed the blade into the ground between himself and the sisters. "Because I found out I was undead. I don't know any necromancers who could've revived me, and my earliest memory after the end of my life was waking up outside YOUR circle."

One of the sisters grumbled. "I told you we should've left him farther out."

Edgar narrowed his eyes. "So you DID do it! I want the whole story… NOW!"

"Fine fine, but you leave when we're done. We have more important things to do, you know."

Edgar nodded his agreement. Normally he'd question what they were up to, but he was too focused on this mystery to wonder about that. "Tell me how you did it, and why, and I'll go."

"The necromancer wasn't the only one watching the orb." Musuk and Gilth spoke at once, and Edgar made a mental note of where Gilth stood in the line. There were only three sisters he couldn't tell apart now.

"We saw through our cauldron as the two emerged from beneath the tower. It was obvious the girl had merged with the Orb."

"We considered bringing her 'into the fold', but we took too long to act."

Gilth spoke alongside another of her sisters, continuing the tale, "Noxus unleashed his Green Mist, and made the girl his student."

Edgar nodded, remembering what Noxus had told the two paladins before. "That's when Vayle captured my spirit in her crystal."

One of the three sisters whose name he had yet to place frowned. "Most of it, the orb strengthened her beyond what we had expected."

Edgar frowned as well, his eyes widening so slightly it was barely noticeable. "'Most of it'? You mean the big undead me was more me than I am? I mean, more than I was?"

Musuk grinned. "If you didn't bring that paladin with you everywhere you go, you'd probably be crushed flat…under your own foot!" The sisters laughed together. They knew from previous encounters that Edgar always had at least one ally with him, and more often than not it was Artix.

Edgar wanted to defend himself, but he reminded himself that answering the questions he had was more important. "And how was it possible for both of us to be there at once? You said Vayle took most of my spirit…did you five take the other portion?"

At once, the sisters stopped laughing. Edgar found their sudden silence disturbing, as though they would suddenly reveal to him he'd walked into a trap. Gilth again spoke in sync with one of her sisters, the same one as before. In the back of his mind, he guessed it was Felst. Gilth seemed to pair with Felst more often than the others, he recalled as he remembered facing them both before confronting the Savage Outworlder, Guffer. "Of course. We reached out for your spirit, but the girl grasped it in the same moment we did. Because she was closer to you, and empowered by the Darkness Orb, we only managed to capture a small part of your spirit."

Another of the sisters spoke, though by this point the paladin didn't care to guess whether it was Osnero or Skunch. "It turned out to be a stroke of luck. With such a small fragment, you would have no memories of your previous life. Though it seems there was enough to recall your name."

Edgar raised an eyebrow, his curiosity piqued at the last statement. "What? Why is that a good thing?" The paladin thought for no more than half a moment, then spoke aloud the question he'd wanted to ask since Artix destroyed the giant undead warrior. "Why did you bring me back?"

Felst held a hand up to her ear. "EH?! WHAT WAS THAT?!"

Ignoring her sister, Musuk answered. "We weren't going to let some cocky little necromancer get one over on us. As soon as we realized the Green Mist had been sent by him, we made a plan to take the orb back."

"It would take time, but we are patient. We knew that the girl would become powerful with the orb, too powerful for most heroes to defeat. So we needed to make our own."

Gilth spoke again with one of the two sisters Edgar still couldn't tell apart; though at the moment he couldn't care less as his mind was filled with fear at what they were telling him. "We needed a champion to defeat her, one with an advantage that even Noxus wouldn't be able to account for. We chose you because we saw how your sister cared for you. Seeing you again would make her too happy to even think about raising her guard. You could have defeated her and taken the orb easily."

Edgar's eyes widened in shock, his fears realized. They had intended to use him to strike down his own sister! His arms trembled as he clenched his fists so tightly he thought his gauntlets might break from the pressure. Gradually, his fear and sadness changed to frustration at the thought of being used. And for such a purpose as that! He felt anger well within him at the idea that both he and his sister had used and manipulated, their lives stolen from them, all because of a simple accident that led Vayle to discover a black orb sought by many powerful individuals, none of whom could reach it before one unfortunate little girl. As mad as he was at the Yaga Sisters for their part in this tragedy, he was grateful for the opportunity to see his sister again. And he had no intention of ever harming her, so he knew that their plan had…wait a minute…

Edgar took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, calming himself as he prepared to ask another question. "If you meant for me to be a weapon, then how did I end up being a paladin?"

"I blame the parents."

Edgar just looked at one of the two as-yet-unnamed sisters with a blank face. The other spoke, actually answering his question. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to raise a child? Especially when you have carefully organized potion ingredients and heroes barging in all the time? We left you outside the circle for someone to find and raise for us. We thought you'd grow up in Amityvale and we could find you when you were old enough."

Musuk frowned as she continued her sister's tale. "But instead you woke up and wandered off until you were found by that travelling couple who took you out of Doomwood. Because of that, you were beyond our reach for too long. We didn't see you again until you started spoiling our fun. We knew then that you wouldn't listen to us, so our plan failed."

Their answer relieved much of his anger and he sighed in relief. However, there was still one thing he wanted to know. "Ok. Last question…" Edgar lifted his right hand, looking down at it as he remembered what Noxus had said about Necromancy. "…how am I not a skeleton? I thought bringing back the dead as flesh was impossible."

"And we thought undead didn't talk, but you seem to enjoy it." Gilth and Musuk grinned at him.

Felst laughed quietly, as though she was sharing a sinister plan with the paladin. "Instead of putting your spirit into a pile of bones, we made a human body through alchemy."

Edgar was astonished at the claim. "You can do that?"

"Oh yes. It isn't easy…"

Musuk smiled. "But on the bright side, we don't need to use transmutation circles anymore."

Already, ideas began forming in Edgar's mind. "Oh really? That would make improving potions a lot quicker! Especially mana potions."

Felst shook her head. "Try it if you like, but it'll cost you an arm and a leg."

The paladin wished he knew how to tell Osnero and Skunch apart from each other as one of the two spoke next. "There you go, we've told you everything. Now leave us be!"

The other of the two cast him a sideways glance. "Unless you feel like going after the Darkness Orb now?"

Did she really just ask him if he felt like hunting down his little sister? "Uh…no."

"Not even a little bit?"

"**NO!**"

Gilth and Felst frowned and waved him away. "Then go home already. Shoo, shoo!"

Satisfied with the answers he'd received, Edgar picked up the large sword of darkness and calmly walked out of the Yaga Sister's stone circle, with two sisters still shooing him off. As he walked in silence, he lifted the sword to examine the dark aura surrounding the blade more closely. It made him think back to the fight, how Artix had wielded the large stone hammer against this very blade, before destroying the undead with a spear of light. He remembered how they had unmasked the Necromantress and found it to be Artix' old friend Vayle, who he learned was his sister after the painful experience of his spirit being made whole again.

Finally, he compared the two of them, friend and family. He took care of Vayle for years, and in his new life he had trained and fought with Artix for considerably less, but came to quickly respect and admire him. He trusted the paladin implicitly; even he was a little overzealous in his crusade against the undead. He also loved Vayle unconditionally. However, he feared that throughout their lives the two had grown so differently that they might never reconcile.

Edgar stopped, finding himself just outside the stone circle; the place where his new life had begun. He looked again at the sword in his hand, and then his gaze fell to the gauntlet shielding that very same hand. His armor was that of a paladin. Before, he had chosen to train as a paladin not only to better face creatures of darkness, but also to better understand his friend. Now, he was just as different from his sister as Artix was.

"Does this mean that I'll never understand her either?" Again Edgar felt a powerful emotion tug at his heart, trying to get in and overwhelm him. This time it was sorrow, at having been given another chance to see his sister only to drift further apart than he'd ever thought possible. His eyes tightly shut as he shook his head. "No!" He couldn't let this happen. He wasn't raised to be a paladin, it wasn't his only path. He had trained as many things, after all; pirate, ninja, ranger…even pumpkin lord.

The Ebil Moglin had already offered to train him before, but he'd turned him down since Artix was there and he felt dealing with Noxus would be easier as a paladin. He knew what Zorbak wanted in exchange too. He rested the flat of the blade on his shoulder as he marched toward the Necropolis entrance with new purpose. He knew Artix would stay there, there were enough undead in that area to keep him busy for weeks.

If Edgar ever wanted to tell Vayle the truth, he couldn't be one of the two paladins that destroyed her spiritcrystal and, as far as she knew, her brother…he had to know about the type of person she was now. The best he could do without speaking to her was to experience what it was like to be a necromancer.


End file.
